It’s not me that got a new doll this time, but our lovely Laura! This is what Laura wrote to me…
I thought I’d share my latest doll. No new doll here in six years, but I’ve been looking for a Pleasant Company 1997 first release Josefina for about six months now and finally found her about a week and a half ago in my price range and NIB/display only condition which was less than one direct from AG, plus she has those soft PC eyelashes that I want on any doll that can have them. She came with the stand to her writing desk. I plan to put a plaque or something on top to use as a table for the two accessory sets of hers I have, her school supplies and nighttime necessities in turn.
She is renamed as all mine except Samantha and Felicity are. her name is Milargros Consuelo Esperanza Alegria Candela which translates in Spanish as miracles, consolation, hope, joy/happiness, and her last name means candle.
If you click on any picture, it will enlarge!
“Her perfect meet braid which I left in for a few days and then couldn’t resist seeing her long pretty hair. She now is in two braids.”
“Here she is with her nighttime necessities. See the tiny thimble on her finger?”
“This next photo is specifically for Linda who asked, either on her or AGPT about the difference between the PC soft eyelashes and the AG black ones.. I have my PC dolls in their meets for ease of recognition. Felicity is a PC 1991 West German with soft coppery ones, Samantha is a PC 1991/1992 German with soft brown ones. she has the longest and they curve around her eyes. My new PC 1997 Josefina (Milargos) has soft lighter brown ones than Samantha, while Caroline (Galilee) has stiff black ones.”
One last one with an interesting piece I realized will work as a doll prop. It’s actually a German syrup warmer (as in maple syrup). My great-aunt sent it to my grandparents many years ago and we used it when I was a child. i have a faux tea light in the bottom, but you use a real one to keep the syrup hot.
“Thanks for letting me share, Jeanne”
It was MY pleasure and everyone else’s too! She is a very pretty doll… and looks like “mint condition” to me!
Now I have one little tidbit to share of what happened to day… I got a haircut! :o) It was desperately overdue and I really like it… This picture was when I got home and hadn’t done a thing to it. I do have quite a bit of curl to my hair… I’ve curled it this evening and it’s nice too… just thought I’d show you…
Come back tomorrow if you want to learn about High Tea and Afternoon Tea time! :o)
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
First of all, thank you again for everyone’s thoughts and prayers for me today. It was a challenging day–I couldn’t drink all the barium they wanted me to, but it was either quit or throw up! And I never did have the IV contrast–they tried Three Times (OUCH!) to start an IV, and said I was “dehydrated”. I was truly surprised–it has been many MANY years since anyone had trouble getting a needle into my arm!!–but then the gal said, the barium will dehydrate you. Well, thanks for the warning! They went ahead and did the scan anyway, and tonight while we were eating supper, my doctor called: there is Nothing Major going on. A tiny cyst on my liver and two small hernias, neither of which needs anything done. The one thing that did show up was that a fragment from my old compression fracture (from the fall on my back a year ago) is causing some narrowing on my spinal cord, and she said we can talk about possible options when I see her next week, depending on how uncomfortable my back is.
Alina, congratulations on getting Kelsey! I can’t wait to see what you make for her!
Laura, your new Josefina is really gorgeous. Congratuations on finding just the right one! Thanks for showing/explaining the differences in the eyelashes, too. Yes, Samantha’s are long!!
Jeanne, your hair is beautiful! Lucky you, to have natural curl! Some of us spend hours with stinky stuff and curlers in our hair, hoping for a similar effect!
Dear Charlotte, thanks for the updates. You continue to be on my prayer list.
Thank you, Charlotte, I’m happy to have her. Continued prayers for answers for you. Glad the test showed nothing serious.
Laura, I am so glad you found the perfect Josephina without the high eyebrows too. Maybe on day I will spurge and get one also. My niece had one growing up but her mom made her get rid of her. I was heartbroken. I thought about all the clothes I sewed for that doll and got her a wonderful tru- nk and all for her little clothes and hangers. Oh well, hopefully the next little girl who inherits her will treasure her. Jenni did keep her Asian Bitty Baby because Aunt Elaine and Uncle Paul gave it to her. She managed to talk her mother into that one to save.
Jeanne, I had no idea that was you in the photo. Because I am still very new, I didn’t know what you looked like and now I do and I can visualize what you look like when you write to us in the blog. You are so beautiful in your new hair style, cut whatever you wish to call it. You are a beautiful woman Jeanne, inside and out. You will make a beautiful Mother of the Bride for your daughter’s wedding. Can’t wait to see photos of the special event. Looking forward to seeing your gown as well. It’s too bad we can’ t have our dolls at weddings too.
I did manage to have my Build-A-Bear Bunny, Felicity, at my daughter’s wedding. She so desperately wanted to be part of her “sister’s” wedding so I dressed her up in a bridal outfit and she was part of the wedding decorations.
Thank you, Elaine. That’s a shame. I hope you find a Josefina of your own someday. As I did, you can put in searches to ebay and they will send you an email when something matches. I put in “Pleasant Company Josefina doll 1997 NIB” to find mine. Actually, my daughter had a PC 1997 Josefina as well, but she downsized prior to college and Josefina was one of the two dolls she decided to sell. I wasn’t a doll collector at the time, so I let her go along with another doll and various outfits and accessories. My daughter was making money for college books. etc.
Charlotte, I am sure what ever medical problem that you have, the Lord will be there for you. I will keep you in my prayers and pray that you recover real soon. May the Lord Bless you and keep you.
Jeanne’s hair first! Love the highlights. So glamorous. Hope lots of pics of mother of the bride are snapped at the upcoming wedding as well as those of the bride and groom. 🙂
Thanks so much Laura for the eyelash education on the AG’s. I’m not sure I’ll ever figure out the history of my Josefina, but it certainly gives me a guide. Your Milargros is very lucky to have any part of the writing desk. What fun and accessories. aka thimble. Wow, so tiny. So happy that you found the perfect girl. She’s lovely.
And Charlotte, glad the scan is history and hope you are feeling better today.
I’m working on another dress for the RRFF girls and some more shorts for Luca. Of course, I had to pick an off plaid that for the life of me, can’t be matched up. Luca said he didn’t care, so that was good. He’ll need another shirt as well. Maybe I can get him to wear a tie. or not. 🙂
Joy, if you don’t mind, could you give us the name of the nearest town to where you live. I like to follow the weather where some of my friends live when unusual weather occurs there, Christchurch, New Zealand, included. I live in Garden Grove, California.
Lol Susette, My phone tells me it is 7C and raining this morning (Friday) but when I looked out of the window there is blue sky and no rain!!
That’s funny Anne. We just looked at the air quality index and each station around us had a different number. Some not even close. We have smoke with a topping of orange right now. 🙂
60 miles north of SF. Santa Rosa 🙂
So that’s why I have Santa Rosa on my list ! Ha, ha.
Yes, that’s me. 🙂
I’m not sure what happened, but first comment was marked “not acceptable”, so try again.Thank you so much, Joy. I’m really happy to have her. Does yours have soft eyelashes? If so, she has to be a PC 1997. If she has a body tag, it will have a date on it.
So sad to hear about the continuing wildfires and so very sad to hear about the baby bear cubs and other helpless animals. i hope some provision is being made for them.
I think Luca needs a shirt and tie. He would be so dapper. All your RRFF girls could wear pretty dresses and he could escort them all to a dance.
When any cubs/fawns etc. are discovered, they first try to find the mother and if no luck, leave water/food and trap. Then they are brought to wildlife sanctuaries until they are old enough to be released. One cub with burned paws was actually able to dig out under a secure fence where he was staying. They have spotted him a few times, but haven’t heard yet if they have been able to catch him. Clever bear.
I’ve never looked closely at the Josefina here. I’ll have to do that and see what I can find. I’m sure she isn’t as nice as your sweet Milargros.
Joy, just tell Luca that Stella is impressed by boys who dress up and wear ties!! That will convince him!! 😂
Your hair looks beautiful, Jeanne! You’re lucky to have some natural curl and the color is beautiful too. It looks so stylish uncurled that you could wear it that way.
You were so lucky Rebecca found the dress. I had a terrible time finding mine 13 years ago but much easier for my older son’s wedding which was 33 years ago. Styles have certainly changed in dresses and wedding venues as well. A friend’s daughter had her destination wedding recently at a venue on a farm in the middle of Oklahoma, and she was born and raised in Redondo Beach, California. A lot of the guests came clear from England! Not the easiest choice for sightseeing in America.
I love seeing other people’s dolls. Your collection is lovely, Laura, and hearing about the history of the eyelashes is interesting. My Felicity is an original with the ribbon wig attachment. The little syrup warmer was quite the find and looks like it was made for dolls. Nothing like that on eBay! I frankly didn’t realize there was such a thing. You really found a perfect NIB Josefina doll! The accessories are so precious for the original dolls. I don’t have the courage to mess with their hair. That’s a very nice way to photograph them in a circle. Thanks for sharing them.
Thank you so much, Susette. Oh, you have an original Felicity as well? Aren’t those ribbon wigs fascinating?
I’m so happy to have found my perfect doll as well. i love those PC accessories. the were quite the downfall of my collecting.. I don’t style Samantha’s or Felicity’s hair except to change a ribbon and my Marie-Grace still has her original braid crown. I also don’t want to mess up Caroline’s curls. Josefina’s will be fun to play with, so I made an exception.
Actually, the syrup warmer is a family heirloom. My mom doesn’t recall it NOT being there, so it’s from 1942 or before. I’ve never seen one like it or even a similar type of thing.Luckily, the copper always stays bright.
Laura, What does Milagros mean? Not familiar with that term. Please explain.
Hi again, Elaine,
Milargros means “miracles” in Spanish.
Laura! What a beautiful doll your Milargros is! And the background you put her in front of is really cool. It might not be Spanish work but it could pass for it. It’s like Milargros is sitting in front of a fabulous piece of art somewhere in her village.
Glad you pointed out her thimble. So tiny I almost missed it. PC certainly had the best accessories.
The syrup pot is a wonderful heirloom from your aunt. What a unique piece to have.
I also like her name. Such meaningful names.
Your girls must be thrilled to have Milargros join them!
Jeanne, I love your haircut. It really looks nice the way you curled it. Do you highlight your hair?
Thanks for sharing !!
Thank you so much, Paula. The piece Milargros is in front of is actually the back seat portion of my Victorian hall tree. It has some additional carved open wood pieces above and then a mirror above that. It just makes a great photo spot with the ceiling light overhead.
I’m glad you like her name. I think you know I put a lot of thought behind my doll and pet names. I like the meanings behind the names.
Yes, PC certainly had the best accessories, IMO, also.
Dear Jeanne, you are definitely getting ready for your mother of the bride photos. I like your hair cut.
Laura’s sweet Milargros is very pretty. It is always wonderful to find a doll one really wants. I usually rename my dolls also. My dolls all have names (although sometimes Mama forgets them – laugh). I have friends who never name their dolls.
I could not believe Laura wrote “no new doll here in six years.” I had to read that 5 times (laugh). In the doll world, that is an eternity. Good for Laura for waiting for her special doll.
Thank you so much, Dorothy. Yes, six years might be a long time, but I was busy collecting the clothing and accessories I liked best from the PC/AG historical collections of Felicity, Caroline, Josefina,, Kirsten, Addy, Samantha/Nellie and Kit to go with those corresponding dolls as in Felicity’s, Samantha’s and now Josefina’s case, or to go with my “custom character historicals”
I did buy more dolls faster at the very beginning. I had Samantha alone from 2007 until 2014 when I bought Felicity for my birthday and Nellie (who I re-wigged ) for Christmas. Then in 2015 I bought Caroline for my birthday and Marie-Grace for Christmas.I do have a number of fur children (aka kitties) though) and they’re my favorite collection. +^-^= *smiles*
Every day I thank the good Lord that I finally had the sense to start reading this blog and joining you ladies. You are salt of the earth and God bless you all.
JEANNE, your hair is fantastic! I just can’t wait to see you in your dress. And don’t skimp on pics of you, George and Reuben at this wedding, please. Yes, the focus is on Rebecca and Karn, but we all want to see “our main characters” very much. You’re going to be ravishing!! 👏👏
CHARLOTTE, well it looks like you got pretty good news and all that prep and anticipation is over. You have my sympathy about blood draws. No matter how much water I drink the day before a draw, I often leave the lab with multiple bandaids on both arms and hands, and several times, up to three different people trying. It’s a first class blast, huh?!? It will be interesting to hear what is suggested to relieve the spinal pressure. The team will keep rooting for you.
ALINA, congratulations upon Kelsey’s arrival. We are looking forward to her new outfits that you will create. Have a great time. And your other son is also very handsome. Is that sweet baby your only grandchild? Thank you for explaining that your church is designed like the Ark. very impressive structure.
LAURA, what an incredible find your Milagros is. She is so perfect that I think she can handle that extraordinarily long name. Congratulations! I’m with DOROTHY, rather astounded that this is a first new doll in six years, but boy, so worth it. Thank you for the tutorial, too. All those dolls are so beautiful and special.
JOY, that Luca is a gem. Boys tend to be a lot more laidback about their clothes, until a certain age. Having raised three, I know that. Although we had no daughters, I taught all girls so I got a really good dose of that, vicariously. We are looking forward to those new duds and have a good time making them happen.
Have a great day, everyone. Sending hugs.
Sally
Thank you so much, Sally. I, for one, am SO glad you joined in the sofa sister fun. You’re great cheerleader with your uplifting comments each day.
I was amazed to find Milargros in perfect condition as well and well within my price limit. Every PC 1997 doll I had seen in the same or slightly worse condition was $150 to topping $300. Patience paid off. A granddaughter was selling her grandmother’s NIB/ or displayed in glass cabinet untouched again collection for her as she was downsizing.
Yes, she has a long name, but actually all my dolls have two middle names. Milargos ended up with three as I had to use all I liked in case she ends up being my only Hispanic doll.
LAURA, Thank you for your wonderful kindness.
It sure makes out hearts sing when we score the perfect doll at the perfect price. Well done, Laura. Yes, patience DOES yield the rewards! 👏😁
Jeanne, your hair looks beautiful and it is nice to have a natural curl/ wave to it. Your highlights are lovely as well.
Can’t wait to hear about High Tea and Afternoon Tea.. *bringing tarts and scones*
Well, here I am ……..finally! We were in no man’s land for a day because of something going wrong with the ATT lines, but all is well now. After 19 hours last Friday, and now a day with no interniet, phone or TV, I am SO glad to be back in civilization!
First, Charlotte, so happy to hear that there is nothing seriously wrong! it certainly took a lot of aggravation to find that out, didn’t it?
Laura, thank you for showing the differences in the eyelashes. Your Milargros is beautiful, and I am sure quite a treasure to have found her after looking for so long. Her braid was so pretty! I love all the things you have for her. I actually don’t have much of what you do have, but I do have her school desk, but not the stand, so I set it up on her nightstand when I have it opened. I also don’t have her nighttime necessities, but do have her horno and loom, lunch and food, plus her goat. That thimble is adorable! If you ever get the chance to get her chest, get it, because it is a beautiful piece and holds a lot of things. My Felicity is an older one, but since I bought her from someone on Ebay, I have no idea how old because I don’t know how to find out .She is from way before Beforever dolls. I have her ready for school now, and will send Jeanne pictures of her by her desk. Again, congratulations on getting her!
Alina’s granddaughter is adorable! I bet she was perfect for the wedding! So much fun for you to look forward to Alina!
Oh Jeanne, your hair is beautiful! I love the highlights better than the gray! You look 20 years younger now, much too young to be the mother of the bride!!! Rebecca should have YOU be her matron of honor! You really will be a beautiful mother of the bride!
Thank you so much, Linda. I’m so happy to have her. I didn’t realize her writing desk was sold separately from the stand.
Does your Josefina have soft eyelashes? What is her neckstamp? Does she have a body tag? Did she come in her meet/ I’ll try to hazard a guess of a time frame, but unless she has the soft PC eyelashes I can’t pin her to a year.
My collection for Milargros is relatively small and was very selective. As usual I picked my personal must-haves. I have a few things I snagged just by chance when my daughter downsized – her meet accessories minus the rebozo, the plum only from her lunch, and her black fan. I then purchased her Christmas dress and mantilla, Feast Day Finery, Party dress minus the Spencer jacket, Books and Supplies, Nighttime Necessities, and her telescope. She has a few accessories and an outfit for each season.
Yes, I think her chest is very pretty, but apart from Samantha’s PC desk (which I inherited from the downsizing), a homemade table, and now the unexpected bonus of Josefina’s writing desk stand, I don’t collect furniture or large pieces.
Laura, actually, the writing desk did come with the stand, but mine was bought on Ebay from someone who didn’t sell the stand with it. The lid of mine was damaged and the hinge is broken, but it sits on top of the desk very well if it is against somehting. the prices of the desk are too much for me when in perfect condition!
Actualy, my Josefina was sold by a woman who was selling her daughter’s dolls for extra money for college, and she came with nothing on, and sitting in a box! She says “Pleasant Company” on her neck stamp, so is an earlier one. At the time I bought her, I didn’t know enough about the dolls to ask the questions I should have, but I was very lucky in scoring a really pretty one in great condition. i don’t think she was played with much at all.She does have all the lcothes AG made for her, most from AG, but a few from Ebay and AGPT. I have no furniture except her nightstand and the trunk. She is displayed with Kaya, and they share a shelf in our family room.
As far as her eylashes being soft, hard to tell, because she is an older doll. The are softer than Kaya’s, who is a much newer doll, but I really oculdn’t tell you the right answer! They aren’t stiff, for sure, like the newer dolls are.
I like to display everything, and can only display so much, as you certainly know! while I would love her collection of small items, they are now all retired and when you find them, they are pretty expensive!
As far as the dress with the black spencer jacket, I cannot have her wear the jacket, because it stains! Don’t bother to get that!
Jeanne your hair looks lovely. I need a haircut and so does the dog but it isn’t happening at the moment. We are back in lockdown since 11.59 pm Tuesday. Only for 3 days here but a week in Auckland where the outbreak has occurred though most people seem to think it will be longer, at least over the weekend. We will find out at 3pm
.
I know it seems like overkill at the moment for only 1 community case originally (there were 20 yesterday) but economically we can’t afford what is happening in Sydney and our hospitals are already stretched, we don’t have enough staff for normal times so couldn’t cope with large numbers of infected people. (Not everyone wants to live at the bottom of the world thousands of miles from anywhere, not even people who were born here).Besides we have enjoyed normal life for so long we don’t want to go back to long drawn out restrictions.
We have had a travel bubble open with Rarotonga for some time and there are quite a few Kiwis stuck over there. I don’t think they are in a hurry to rush back for lockdown!!! I can’t understand why. Surely it is better to be home in lockdown than stuck on an island soaking up the sun and drinking cocktails lol.
I think you answered your own question, Anne. I love it!!
Jeannie, Congrats on Josefina.. But the real Doll is YOU! Hot Dang Mama!! You look good!! You look like you can still dip it and do it!! GOD Bless You
What a newsy blog today!
Glad nothing serious showed up. Charlotte….but do you feel better?
Jeanne you hair looks beautiful! Are you wearing it down and curly or “up” for the wedding?
Good advice to have the photographer take lots of pics of you and George too. How often do you get totally dressed up?🤔
Thank you for the eyelash lesson Laura. I remember when Jeanne showed us the difference in in the various Josephina faces. I realized then that the one I had was the prettier face. I bought her to have on hand to fit the AG clothes on. She had a “Momie” haircut so I rewigged her.
Thanks ladies for the fun posts!
Anne said, “Surely it is better to be home in lockdown than stuck on an island soaking up the sun and drinking cocktails lol.” I couldn’t agree with you more. LOL indeed.
This is absolutely typical of my retirement — cancer, hospice, relearning to walk, not being able to get a decent haircut in years.
However, we have dolls and I have books and email and the blog and good friends and plenty to do — and our summer has been nicer than most we’ve had in recent years. I love Jeanne’s hair and haircut. Chemo turned mine silver but my sister likes it so much that she (and the pandemic) decided to grow hers out to see if it would match mine — it does! She’s quite pleased. One hairdresser asked me what I used on my hair. I said, “Chemo. I do not recommend the method.”
Back to Jeanne’s hair — it’s going to be perfect with that dress. Blue for the fall sky will be perfect with the colors Rebecca has chosen. Who is making the cake? I want to see pictures of that. It’s so nice that cakes can be whatever you want now — chocolate, spice, carrot.
Charlotte, I’m so pleased that the tests showed nothing serious. I’ll bet you feel better already. Relief is wonderful medicine.
Laura, your Milagros is lovely. I renamed my Jess — she’s now Rowan Hope — the Rowan tree is supposed to be protection from evil, and Hope, of course, is for hope — so she now has a meaningful name, like Milagros does.
I had 3 dolls, a 21 (Jesse), Kit, and Lindsay — a JILY, a historical, and a GOTY — and thought that was enough, though I had always wanted Felicity. After chemo, I thought, “I really don’t see why not” and found a pretty one on Ebay. When she came, she needed a bath, hair care, and new clothes. We both needed help, so that worked out. Josefina was next. Then several more, and finally Elizabeth, who is now Stella Elizabeth, named for Stella Isaacs, Lady Reading, who became Baroness Swansborough in her own right (for her WWII work) and the first woman to take her seat in the House of Lords.
Sometimes we really need a change from making dinner, doing dishes, making beds — though I remember when having time to do those things was a privilege. Dolls and doll clothes — what wonderful things.
Hi, Marilyn,
Wow, you have really been through a LOT. You are so right about dolls and doll clothes adding that spice to our lives, and, as you say, books! And email and this blog. You seem to be a real history buff, yes? I love it, too.
Very pleased to hear you have had a good summer. Today was lovely here, topped off at 80, clouds quite often to break up the sun intensity. I enjoyed learning more about you, today, Marilyn. You’ve definitely got Moxie.
👏 ❤️
It is getting late here but I have to compliment your hair style Jeanne. Beautiful color and haircut! Your MOB dress will look smashing with your new tresses. Your dress is very close to the color of the dress I wore for my son’s very intimate wedding of nine people including the bride and groom. I hope you will share some pictures of the special day.
I hope you start feeling better Charlotte and that no news is good news.
Laura, you made my day with your photos of Milagros. I loved eyelashes in the round: ) I am very particular about my AG dolls eyelashes. I prefer the soft also but with dolls that weren’t around in those days, the stiff mattel will have to do. I also added a new doll to my AG girls today. I sold a Felicity in the lavender gown a few months ago and have missed her ever since. My 1991 is for looking at but not to touch because I could not bear to send her to the doll hospital if her limbs were loose. The “new” Felicity will stand in as a model for all the PC clothing and accessories have collected. I have a bad habit of regretting letting go of a doll and then replacing her.
Agreeing with Sally, this blog is a balm for the soul.